Columns with low transverse reinforcement, i.e., poor detail, small size, wide spacing are used commonly in the old buildings. It is often failed in shear with brittle mode that can lead to suddenly collapse entire building. Therefore, the exact determination of shear strength is significant for estimating the response of reinforced concrete (RC) columns under earthquake events. Based on four large full scale RC columns (8008003200)mm with low transverse reinforcement, the paper pointed out the factors that effect on shear strength, and proposed the revised shear strength equation, also the interaction diagram between bending moment (M) -shear force (V)-axial compression force (N) to design or check the shear ability of RC columns. Yet, the simple process to build the backbone curves and hysteretic loops was proposed and compared with tested results and test database.